1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a system and a method for bidirectional transmission/reception used for data transmission/reception, and a transmission apparatus. More particularly, it relates to the system and method for bidirectional transmission/reception used for data transmission/reception, and the transmission apparatus, which may be used with advantage in television broadcast for airing the program information or the information for commercial advertisements as broadcast program.
2. Description of the Related Art
As transmission means for variable information, there is the television broadcast retained to be of a so-called broadcast type. In television broadcast, a broadcasting station distributes the program information or the commercial advertisement information by having the information carried on the broadcast signals by a transmission apparatus. The subscribers receive the distributed broadcast signals by receivers so as to be purveyed with the program or the commercial advertisements in the received program. For example, the subscribers are supplied with the information on new products, for example, by the commercial advertisements. The suppliers of the commercial advertisements, referred to below as sponsors, acquire commercial profits from their good impressions created by these commercial advertisements. Here, the commercial advertisements are retained to be subsidiary to the ordinary programs.
Meanwhile, in the information transmission exploiting the television broadcast, the information is purveyed unidirectionally from the broadcasting station or the sponsor. As means for acquiring the response to the commercial advertisements from the viewers, it may be contemplated to conduct a campaign for new products in the commercial advertisements such as by presenting a commercial product to the viewer who replied to a quiz by a postcard or telephone to check the audience rate of the commercial advertisements. This, however, takes much time until the audience rate of or the general response to the commercial advertisements can be comprehended completely. On the other hand, there are occasions wherein the viewer is desirous to know immediately whether or not the or she has responded to the quiz correctly and acquired the prize, such that, if the response is comprehended by the sponsor only after prolonged time, the number of participants to the quiz would be small. Moreover, it is cumbersome for the viewer to write a postcard or phone. That is, the above-described conventional means for participation in a campaign held by the sponsor tends to frustrate the intention of the viewers to take part in it, while only a marginal publicizing effect is achieved by the commercial advertisements.
Moreover, if a campaign is introduced by a commercial advertisement to check the response, the viewer is not necessarily viewing the commercial advertisement. For example, if a commercial advertisement is aired within the time of a program having a high audience rate, there are occasions wherein the viewer switches the channel to view other programs or to do other things than viewing the commercial advertisement. In such case, it cannot be checked how many viewers are viewing the commercial advertisement such that the response to the commercial advertisement cannot be checked effectively. In addition, if the viewer switches the channel during the time of airing the commercial advertisement to view other programs, the commercial advertisement itself leads to the lowering of the audience rate of the program.
The conventional practice also has been to air the commercial advertisements in the programs enjoying a high audience rate with an intention of improving the publicizing effect of the commercial advertisements. That is, the commercial advertisement by itself is unable to raise the audience rate, such that, if the publicizing effect of the commercial advertisement is to be improved, the sponsor has to set the airing time zone for the commercial advertisement based on the audience rate of the program in order to have the commercial advertisement aired in the program enjoying a high audience rate.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a system and a method for bidirectional transmission/reception used for data transmission/reception, and a transmission apparatus, in which the information aired by e.g., television broadcast is received at a high probability to permit the sponsor to grasp the results of the reception more readily.
In one aspect, the present invention provides a bidirectional transmission/reception system including a transmission device having multiplexing means for multiplexing the response request information requesting the response from a subscriber who has received the broadcast signals on broadcast signals, a reception device having receiving means for receiving the broadcast signals transmitted from the transmission device and transmission means for outputting the broadcast signals transmitted by the transmitting device and transmitting means for outputting the broadcast signals received by this reception means and the response request information to audio/video outputting means and for transmitting over a transmitting network response data inputted by the audience responsive to the response request information outputted to the audio/video outputting means, and a collective information generating device having response data recovery means for recovering the response data transmitted by the transmitting network and information generating means for generating the collective information based on the response data recovered by the response data recovery means, the transmission device multiplexes the collective information downstream of the response request information of the broadcast signals by the multiplexing means.
In this bidirectional transmission/reception system, the broadcast signals having the response request information multiplexed therein by multiplexing means of the transmission device are transmitted by the transmitting means. The reception device outputs the response request information in the broadcast signals received by the receiving means to the audio/visual outputting means to transmit the response data by the subscriber over the transmission circuit to the collective information generating device. The collective information generating device formulates the collective information of the response data based on the response data recovered by the response data recovery means. The collective information generating device formulates the collective information of the response data based on the response data recovered by the response data recovery means. The transmission device multiplexes the collective information downstream of the broadcast signals to transmit the multiplexed data to the reception device.
By so doing, the information aired in e.g., television broadcast is received with a high probability, whilst the sponsor is able to comprehend the results of reception easily.
In another aspect, the present invention provides a bidirectional transmission/reception method including a transmission step of multiplexing the response request information requesting the response from a subscriber who has received the broadcast signals on broadcast signals for transmitting the broadcast signals having the response request information multiplexed thereon, a reception and transmission step for receiving the broadcast signals transmitted from the transmission device, outputting the transmitted broadcast signals and transmitting means for outputting the broadcast signals received by this reception means and transmitting the response request information to audio/video outputting means and for transmitting over a transmitting network response data inputted by the audience responsive to the response request information outputted to the audio/video outputting means, and a collective information generating step for recovering the response data transmitted by the transmitting network and for generating the collective information based on the response data recovered by the response data recovery means, the transmission step multiplexes the collective information downstream of the response request information of the broadcast signals.
With the present bidirectional transmission/reception method, the response request information multiplexed on the broadcast signals by the transmission step is received by the subscriber. The response data from the subscriber, inputted in association with the response request information outputted to the audio/visual output means, is transmitted to the transmission network. The collective information is formulated based on the response data recovered from the transmission network and is multiplexed downstream of the response request information of the broadcast signals for transmission to the subscriber.
By so doing, the information aired in e.g., television broadcast is received with a high probability, whilst the sponsor is able to comprehend the results of reception readily.
In yet another aspect, the present invention provides a transmission apparatus including multiplexing means for multiplexing the response request information requesting a response from a subscriber who has received broadcast signals on the broadcast signals, transmission means for transmitting the broadcast signals multiplexed with the response request information, response data recovery means for recovering response data of the subscriber transmitted over the transmission network, the response data being generated in association with the response supply information in the broadcast signals outputted to the audio/visual outputting means on reception of the broadcast signals transmitted by the transmission means; and information generating means for generating the collective information based on the response data recovered by the response data recovery means. The multiplexing means multiplexes the collective information downstream of the response request information of the broadcast signals.
In such transmission apparatus, the broadcast signals, multiplexed with the response request information by the multiplexing means, are transmitted by the transmission means. The transmission apparatus recovers, over the transmission network, the response data inputted by the subscriber receiving the broadcast signals by a receiver in association with the response request information in the broadcast signals outputted to the audio/visual outputting means. The transmission apparatus generates the collective information of the response data by information generating means based on the recovered response data. The transmission apparatus multiplexes the collective information downstream of the recording and/or reproduction of the broadcast signals to transmit the resulting multiplexed data to the receiver. By so doing, the broadcast signals, multiplexed with the response request information by the multiplexing means, are transmitted, whilst the subscriber, receiving the broadcast signals by e.g., a receiver, recovers the response data inputted by the subscriber in reply to the response request information in the broadcast signals outputted to the audio/visual outputting means, by response data recovery means. Also, the collective information of the response data is formulated by the information generating means based on the recovered response data and is multiplexed downstream of the response request information of the broadcast signals. The multiplexed data is returned to the subscriber.
Also, in this manner, the information aired in e.g., television broadcast is received with a high probability, whilst the sponsor is able to comprehend the results of reception readily.